March, ig20 



BETTER FRUIT 



Page p 



vent drying, but not so moist as to 

 cause mold to develop on them. The 

 cuttings may also be made during the 

 winter or in early spring. In the latter 

 case they are put in the nursery at 

 once. The cuttings should be set from 

 three to six inches apart in the nursery 

 row, with the soil firmly packed about 

 them. This is done as early in the 

 spring as the soil can be worked, 

 whether the cuttings are made in the 

 autumn or later. Not more than two 

 buds should be left above the ground. 

 At the end of one or two seasons they 

 should make plants satisfactory for set- 

 ting in the field. All the new wood is 

 removed each year to make cuttings. 



Time to Plant 



In most sections plants may be set 

 either in the autumn or spring, but in 

 Northern Iowa and Nebraska and the 

 states north of them only spring plant- 

 ing should be practiced. Both currants 

 and gooseberries start growth very 

 early in the spring, and if nursery stock 

 can be secured in the autumn that sea- 

 son is preferred for planting except in 

 the section just mentioned. In order 

 that the roots may be thoroughly estab- 

 lished in the soil before winter, the 

 plants should be set as early as it is pos- 

 sible to obtain them in a dormant con- 

 dition. Currants may be planted as 

 early as the middle of September in the 

 Northern states, except as noted above, 

 and gooseberries as early as October 1. 

 It is often difficult, however, to pur- 

 chase plants for autumn setting. 



Distance to Plant 



The distance between the rows de- 

 pends on the method of tillage. If a 

 one-horse cultivator is to be used, the 

 rows should be set six feet apart, while 

 for a two-horse cultivator the rows 

 should be eight feet apart. 



The distance between the plants in 

 the rows depends to a considerable ex- 

 tent on the variety. If the bushes are 

 of a variety that does not grow large, 

 they may be set as close as four feet, 

 while if the bushes are naturally large 

 when fully grown or the ground is very 

 rich five or six feet apart is preferred. 

 The bushes of the Wilder, London, and 

 some other red currants and of all black 

 currants grow larger than those of the 

 Perfection, Fay, and Red Cross varie- 

 ties and should be set farther apart in 

 the row. Therefore, if in any section 

 Red Cross bushes are commonly set 

 five feet apart in the row the Wilder 

 bushes should be at least six feet apart. 



The Downing, Houghton, Oregon, and 

 Poorman gooseberries have larger 

 bushes than most others. They may be 

 set four or five feet apart in soil of 

 ordinary fertility, but in very fertile 

 soil they will need to be six or seven 

 feet apart. Gooseberry bushes of Euro- 

 pean parentage usually do not grow as 

 large as those mentioned, which are be- 

 lieved to be at least partly of American 

 ancestry, and it is rarely necessary to 

 set them more than five feet apart. 



Directions for Planting 



Before planting, all broken roots 

 should be cut olf and the top cut back 

 to stand about six inches above the 



ground. If the plants have especially 

 strong root systems the tops may be left 

 ten to twelve inches high. The plants 

 should be set somewhat deeper than 

 they stood in the nursery. If they do 

 not branch naturally near the surface 

 of the ground, they should be set so 

 deep that the lowest branch starts just 

 below the surface of the soil. This will 

 cause them to take the form of a bush 

 instead of a small tree. 



The soil must be packed firmly about 

 the roots with the foot as the plants 

 are set. Without such packing the roots 

 may dry out and the plants die. 



In friable soils, such as fine sandy 

 loams, the hole for planting may be 

 made by forcing a spade straight down 

 and then pressing it forward. The roots 

 are thrust into this hole, the spade with- 

 drawn, and the soil firmed about them. 

 Plants can be set very rapidly in this 

 manner. In heavy soils holes may have 

 to be dug with a spade before planting. 



be used, and very little hand hoeing 

 will be necessary. If they are set so 

 that the cultivator can be run in one 

 direction only and the rows are seven 

 or eight feet apart, a horse hoe may be 

 used. This is easily guided, and if used 

 in connection with the cultivator will 

 reduce the amount of hand labor very 

 considerably. 



A mulch of straw or wild hay is 

 sometimes advised for currants and 

 gooseberries. It conserves moisture, 

 keeps down weeds, and takes the place 

 of tillage. Mice are likely to multiply 

 in mulched fields, however, and girdle 

 the plants; in fact, the injury from this 

 source is so often serious that growers 

 rarely use a mulch. 



Interplanting and Intercropping 



Gooseberries and currants frequently 

 are interplanted in orchards or vine- 

 yards. 



A plant of the May Duke gooseberry grown in New York. This gooseberry, which 

 has large dark red fruit, is recommended by the New York Agricultural Experi- 

 ment Station as the best early gooseberry of European parentage. 



The cost is then much greater than by 

 the former method, but unless the holes 

 are dug the clay may harden about the 

 roots so that the plants will never grow 

 well. 



Tillage and Mulching 



Tillage should begin soon after the 

 plants have been set and should be 

 continued at frequent intervals through- 

 out the growing season or until a green- 

 manure crop is planted. The tillage 

 should be deeper the first year than 

 later. 



Both currants and gooseberries usu- 

 ally are shallow rooted, and care must 

 be taken not to injure the roots in till- 

 age. If a cultivator is run rather deep 

 the first year the roots may be made to 

 grow somewhat deeper than they other- 

 wise would. The first spring cultiva- 

 tion should be deeper than later ones. 

 Growers sometimes use a plow at this 

 time. 



If plants are set five or more feet 

 apart each way a horse cultivator may 



^^^len interplanted in cherry or- 

 chards gooseberries and currants may 

 be left for several years, according to 

 the growth of the orchard and the size 

 of the bushes; and in apple and pear 

 orchards they may be left somewhat 

 longer, though the ground occupied 

 should be restricted to one or two rows 

 of bushes through the center of the 

 space between the tree rows. Other- 

 wise, the bushes will be likely to inter- 

 fere with the proper care of the trees. 

 In vineyards the currants and gooseber- 

 ries are often made a part of the perma- 

 nent plantation, but while they are com- 

 monly productive when so grown, the 

 grapes are likely to be rather unpro- 

 ductive. 



In gardens where the available land 

 is limited in extent, currants and goose- 

 berries may well be planted among the 

 tree fruits and left there permanently. 

 The shade of the trees protects the 

 fruits from sun scald, and the foliage 

 is usually healthier in such locations 



